State of Michigan

Governor Gretchen Whitmer is a lifelong Michigander. She is a lawyer, an educator, former prosecutor, State Representative and Senator. She was the first woman to lead a Senate caucus. But the most important title she boasts is MOM. Inspired by her family, she’s devoted her life to building a stronger Michigan for everyone.
Governor Whitmer was elected to the House of Representatives in 2000 and elected to the Michigan State Senate in 2006 where she served as the Senate Democratic Leader. In the 2018 gubernatorial election, Governor Whitmer won all 83 counties in the primary and won the general election with 53 percent of the vote. Since taking her oath of office, she has put together the most diverse cabinet in our state’s history and has signed executive directives to clean up our drinking water, end discrimination in state government based on sexual orientation and gender identity, secure equal pay for equal work, and expand opportunities for small and disadvantaged businesses.
Governor Whitmer is committed to solving the problems Michiganders face every day. That means ensuring every Michigander has a great public education and a path to a good-paying job, every community has clean, safe drinking water, and everyone can drive to work or drop their kids at school safely, without blowing a tire or cracking a windshield.
Governor Whitmer and her husband Marc Mallory live in Lansing with her two daughters, Sherry and Sydney. Her three stepsons, Alex, Mason, and Winston all live in Michigan as well. Governor Whitmer earned a bachelor’s degree and law degree from Michigan State University. Born and raised in Michigan, Gretchen Whitmer is honored to serve as Governor of Michigan.

Brom Stibitz currently serves as the acting Director for the Michigan Department of Technology, Management & Budget (DTMB) as well as the state’s Chief Information Officer, a role in which he manages all aspects of cybersecurity and information technology across state government. In his previous role as the DTMB chief deputy director he served as the head of operations for the agency of nearly 3,000 employees, providing information technology, business, and administrative services to Michigan's residents, businesses, state agencies, state employees, and retirees. With an emphasis on efficient business processes, customer service, and employee engagement, Stibitz has led numerous efforts to create a culture of continuous improvement at DTMB, ensuring timely delivery of services to more than 48,000 state employees and 10 million Michigan residents. Under his leadership, DTMB improved customer satisfaction scores by 19 percentage points, received two “A” grades in the Digital States Survey, and was named the top state government procurement operation in the nation by Governing Magazine. Stibitz has spearheaded efforts to enhance IT security, streamline business processes, and drive transparency and rigor around IT governance. Stibitz also serves as the vice president of the National Association of State Chief Administrators. Prior to joining DTMB, Stibitz served as the director of executive operations for the Michigan Department of Treasury. Stibitz holds a bachelor’s degree in biology from Kalamazoo College and a master’s degree in public administration from Northern Michigan University.

Dan Thurmon is the founder and President of Motivation Works, a company that helps leaders and their organizations move confidently through change and transformation so that they achieve and contribute MORE. Dan is an expert speaker and performer. He has delivered thousands of presentations across six continents for audiences including world leaders, Fortune 500 companies, entrepreneurs, educators, and even troops on the front lines of battle. In 2011, he was inducted into the prestigious Speaker Hall of Fame. Dan recently served as the President of the National Speakers Association. During his tenure, he led the Board of Directors and the 3,000+ member organization through a critical transformation, which included new governance, a new mission, higher member value, and greater financial accountability. He’s authored two books: Success in Action and Off Balance On Purpose. Dan produces an ongoing weekly video coaching series and podcast in which he shares leadership principles and life-enhancement strategies in under three minutes. He is a health and fitness advocate. In his 50s, Dan continues to train and perform advanced acrobatics, and enjoys hobbies such as golf, mountain unicycling and the flying trapeze.

Teri Takai is the Co-Director of the Center for Digital Government, a national research and advisory institute on information technology policies and best practices in state and local government. She worked for Ford Motor Company for 30 years in global application development and information technology strategic planning. From Ford, she moved to EDS in support of General Motors. A long-time interest in public service led her to the government sector, first as CIO of the State of Michigan, then as CIO of the State of California, and subsequently the CIO of the U.S. Department of Defense, the first woman appointed to this role. She then served as the CIO for Meridian Health Plan. She is a member of several industry advisory boards. Teri has won numerous awards including Governing Magazine’s Public Official of the Year, CIO Magazine’s CIO Hall of Fame, Government Technology Magazine’s Top 25 Doers, Dreamers & Drivers, the Women in Defense Excellence in Leadership Award, and the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service.

Phil Bertolini is the Co-Director of the Center for Digital Government, a national research and advisory institute on information technology policies and best practices in state and local government. Previously, he served as deputy county executive and CIO for Oakland County, Michigan. During his 31-year tenure, Phil built a world-class IT organization in the second-largest county in Michigan, just north of Detroit. As Oakland County CIO, he oversaw more than 150 employees serving over 1.2 million residents. In 2005, he was also promoted to deputy county executive, holding dual positions until his retirement. Phil’s efforts earned the county national attention, winning numerous awards for technology innovation and excellence. He was named Governing Magazine’s Public Official of the Year and Government Technology Magazine’s Top 25 Doers, Dreamers & Drivers. He was also honored by the President Obama White House as a Champion of Change.

Dustin Haisler is the Chief Innovation Officer for e.Republic. As Chief Innovation Officer, he has a strategic role to help shape the company’s products, services, and future direction. Primarily, he leads e.Republic Labs, a market connector created as an ecosystem to educate, accelerate, and ultimately scale technology innovation within the public sector. Dustin began he career at a very young age as the finance director and later CIO for Manor, TX, a small city outside Austin. He quickly built a track record and national reputation as an early innovator in civic tech, for which he was named a Government Technology Top 25 Doer, Dreamer and Driver in 2009. A member of Code for America’s original steering committee, Dustin pioneered government use of commercial technologies not before used in the public sector – including Quick-Response (QR) barcodes, crowdsourcing, and gamification. Dustin went on to the private sector to help broaden the adoption of these and other civic innovations. His work has been featured in Wired, Fast Company, the Wall Street Journal, Inc., and the Today Show on NBC. An in-demand speaker, he has given two TEDx speeches – one on Disrupting Government (TEDxAustin) and the other on Disrupting Education (TEDxLivermore).

Prior to Governor Kelly’s appointment as Secretary of Administration, Dr. DeAngela Burns-Wallace served as the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Studies at the University of Kansas. Dr. Burns-Wallace started her career as a Foreign Service Officer (FSO) with the U.S. Department of State. Dr. Burns-Wallace has been selected for various leadership opportunities, awards and honors throughout her higher ed and government career, including the 2018 White House Champions of Change College Opportunity, and earning a Superior Honor and three Meritorious Honor awards from the U.S. State Department. Dr. Burns-Wallace serves as a national trainer and curriculum developer for various national professional development organizations, non-profits, and higher ed institutions on issues ranging including micro-aggressions, multigenerational workplace differences, diversity and inclusion, change management, professional development pathways, and strategic planning. Service is also a cornerstone of her journey. Dr. Burns-Wallace currently serves on Stanford University’s Board of Governors, and has previously held board roles in numerous local, regional, and national organizations, and international selection committees including Gates Millennium Scholars, Dell Foundation Scholars, and Rhodes, Marshall, and Fulbright fellowships. Dr. Burns-Wallace holds a dual bachelor’s degree in International Relations and African American studies from Stanford University, a Master in Public Affairs from the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University, and a doctorate in education from the University of Pennsylvania.

Anthony Huey is a highly popular international speaker and communications consultant who offers session attendees pragmatic communications tools, tips and techniques they can use immediately in their professional and personal lives. His career includes tenures as a news reporter, magazine senior editor, crisis management specialist, media relations consultant and executive speech coach. Anthony heads Reputation Management, LLC, one of the nation’s leading communications training and crisis consulting companies. He has presented nearly 2,700 keynote speeches, workshops and seminars. His direct client work includes a wide variety of advertising, public relations and communications initiatives for hundreds of trade associations, municipalities and companies.

Lisa Cawley is seasoned public sector consultant with over 20 years of experience working across state, local, higher education and nonprofit clients. The theme among all of Lisa’s work is her interest in helping public sector clients solve difficult problems using innovative and creative solutions. In her current role as the Michigan Public Service Account Lead, within Accenture’s Health and Public Service practice, she is dedicated to bringing the best of Accenture to help our public sector institutions deliver improved outcomes to the citizens of Michigan.

Joe Filippello is a SLED Systems Engineer at Pure Storage. He has been working in the technology sector for over 15 years with experience across many technologies. He joined Pure Storage in 2020 after working at Nutanix, VMware, a partner, and most importantly as a customer.
Joe is a graduate of IUPUI and enjoys spending his free time playing hockey, golf, or cooking on his different grills. He has a daughter that is why he works hard during the week so he can enjoy playing with her on the weekend.

General Manager for Attorney General, Executive Office of the Governor, Labor and Economic Opportunity and Transportation, Department of Technology, Management & Budget, State of Michigan

As General Manager for the Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget (DTMB), Ms. Galeazzi is responsible for all Information Technology (IT) services provided to the Attorney General, the Executive Office of the Governor, the Department of Talent and Economic Development, and the Department of Transportation. She oversees IT strategic planning and governance of IT investments, with a focus on customer service, innovation, and new technologies to achieve Agencies’ strategic business objectives. In her previous role as the DTMB Chief of Staff, she served as liaison between the state Chief Information Officer/DTMB Director and the senior executive team, leading and coordinating efforts to manage consolidated IT services and administrative services for all state agencies. She led the planning and implementation of various strategic IT business initiatives; accomplishments include the implementation of the 2014 State of Michigan Digital Strategy, Mobile-First Strategy and Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) Program, Michigan Cyber Range, Michigan Cyber Civilian Corps. Prior to joining the CIO office, she held senior IT management and IT program management positions, including president of a start-up web design company. Ms. Galeazzi holds a bachelor's degree in business administration, management of information systems.

Kumar Rachuri is a business and information technology (IT) leader with 25 years of experience in leadership, IT program and project management, strategic planning, operations, and corporate business development. He specializes in the identification of State and Local Government business requirements and the development of innovative technological solutions to meet the unique challenges of government. Kumar is currently the Vice President of SLED Services, IBM US Market. Prior to IBM Kumar worked as the Industry Principal for Digital Government Solutions, SLG vertical at Adobe. Previous to Adobe, Kumar worked for the State of Ohio for eighteen plus years. During his long and fulfilling career as a public servant, he contributed his services across five different agencies in various executive roles as a CIO and as a Deputy Director.

Self-proclaimed bureaucracy hacker, and vocal proponent of digital services, technology transformation, and Agile practices in government IT.
With over 25 years in enterprise information technology, 20 of them in public service, I continue to provide strategic leadership in all areas of information technology to peers and executives alike.
I am a strong advocate for human-centered design, cross-functional agility, and a product mindset in enterprise IT service delivery, integrating IT industry best practices into government program delivery, to provide human-centered services to residents in a secure and cost-effective way.
After working for Dell and Microsoft in Europe, and a Cisco VAR, Microsoft Solution Partner, and a municipal government in Canada, I have been with the State of Michigan Department of Technology Management and Budget for 6 years, where I am currently the Director of Enterprise Solution Design Services and acting Director of Enterprise Architecture.

Dominic Savone is and AT&T Sales Manager responsible for State, Local & Education customers in the Detroit and Chicago area. He has 23 years with AT&T with 14 years’ experience with SLED customers.